Washington, DC - Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the 21 public utility commissions that will receive technical assistance from the National Laboratories to help state regulators make decisions and develop innovative solutions to improve grid reliability and resiliency, enable the adoption of new technologies, promote energy and environmental justice, and develop strategies to decarbonize their electric grids.
“Public utility commissions are at the front lines of our energy transition,” said Kelly Speakes-Backman, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. “Rapid technological advancements and clean energy goals present changes to the status quo—but also great opportunities for consumers. These efforts can help to make the grid more reliable, face climate change, and increase equity.”
This initiative offers state regulators the opportunity to leverage the expertise and world-class modeling capabilities of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. These projects include 1-2 years of technical assistance focusing on critical emerging and existing topics, including equity and justice, distributed energy adoption and integration, grid planning, and energy resilience.
Public utility commissions in the following states have been selected to receive technical assistance:
- Arkansas
- California
- Hawaii
- Iowa
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Massachusetts
- Maryland
- Maine
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- Oregon
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- Utah
- Washington
- Wisconsin
The projects are supported through DOE’s Grid Modernization Initiative (GMI), which coordinates research and development across the department to help set the nation on an affordable path to a resilient, secure, and reliable grid with a reduced environmental impact. GMI is a collaborative partnership of five DOE offices: Fossil Energy and Carbon Management; Nuclear Energy; Electricity; Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; and Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response.
